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Jacquelyn Ducat Steps Out and Steps Up After Graduation

Photos By: Dottie Stover, photojournalist

   After receiving her bachelor’s degree in business administration with an integral (minor) in accounting and international business at the All-University Commencement on June 9, UC student Jacquelyn Ducat will return to work at Chiquita Brands International. She’s been a co-op student, working as a financial analyst.

Jacquelyn Ducat was attracted to UC's Lindner Honors-PLUS program.

The Bowling Green, Ohio, native was enticed to come to UC by the Carl H. Lindner Honors-PLUS program.

“They sent me a letter and a program description with the word ‘international’ in it,” Jacquelyn says, with a smile. “When they offered me a full-ride scholarship, it was UC all the way!”

She credits Honors-PLUS with much of what she has achieved already.

“You have to learn business etiquette and professionalism,” she says. “That’s especially helpful for a 19-year-old in a corporate office.”

Through her co-op, she has had the opportunity to travel and learn Spanish by going to Central America to visit Chiquita’s operations in Costa Rica. As a result of her hard work and dedication, she won the Outstanding International Business Student Award, the Outstanding International Co-op Award for the College of Business, and the Delta Sigma Psi Scholarship Key. 

International Business Award recipient, Jacquelyn Ducat, shows some of the many places she's studied abroad.

“UC made it very easy to travel abroad,” Jacquelyn says. “I’ve gotten to travel abroad every year since my freshman year. It’s nice to get these trips in while you’re studying — it’s so much more affordable.” She participated in international trips outside of the College of Business, including the Romance Languages Department’s study abroad in Querétaro, Mexico; CoB's Santiago, Chile, IB Completion Program; the Honors-PLUS international trip to Europe, and a six-month co-op rotation in San José, Costa Rica.

In addition to co-op and HonorsPLUS, Jacquelyn was also a Cincinnatus Scholar. One of the requirements of being a Cincinnatus Scholar is volunteering for service.

“I hadn't really thought about volunteer work in high school, so it was great to really get involved while in college,” Jacquelyn says. She volunteered for Junior Achievement and will continue to do so, as a consultant to first and second graders. She also volunteered for the March of Dimes and the Ronald McDonald House.

Besides the value of volunteering, Jacquelyn also appreciates the many opportunities for involvement in general at UC.

Jacquelyn joins the

“The best thing to do is during Welcome Week to get all the materials and attend the first meetings of any groups that sound mildly interesting,” she recommends. “Then you make friends and contacts outside your major, outside your class. It makes you feel part of a university community.”

Jacquelyn is not the first in her family to have a great experience at UC. Her brother graduated with a UC degree in engineering in 2000 and her sister received her MD from the College of Medicine in 2006. Jacquelyn is happy to extend that line.

“I have had a wonderful experience here,” she notes. “UC was great at helping me achieve my goals.”